Lost in More than Thoughts
by Hikari Netto
Summary: Shonen ai. Netto wakes up early, finishes his homework in the morning, and only eats 7 plates of curry? What has gotten into him? Has Enzan blushed too much recently? Netto then gets kidnapped! EnzanxNetto ChaudxLan with a hint of RockmanxBlues. R&R Plz!
1. Snowy Days

Disclaimer: I do NOT, I repeat, **DO NOT (DON'T)** own anything from the Rockman/Megaman Battle Network Series.

Hikari Netto: Hey peoplez!! xD This is my first fan fiction ever. :] A friend of mine requested that I write a shonen ai fan fiction, so here's what came in mind! No, I'm **NOT** gay or bi, for your information, so don't get any ideas! ^^ Anyway, enjoy! x3 Don't forget to **review** after you read!!! All comments are welcome. Thanks!!!

* * *

**Lost in More than Thoughts**

**Chapter 1: Snowy Days**

Staring out of the window, a young Net Battler was thinking, although he wasn't quite sure what he was thinking about.

He looked at the clock, which read, "7:30 AM." He gave a deep sigh, trying to remember something, although he wasn't quite sure of what to remember.

He thought that maybe he was just bored since it was way too early in the morning, but he knew that wasn't it. He decided to forget about it for now and went to take a shower.

Inside a blue PET, a certain blue net navi had just woken up. While taking a peek into the real world, he was amused at what he had embarked upon.

A Netto-less bed! In the morning, on a Sunday, no less? Maybe he had been dreaming, but he slapped himself, indicating that it was real enough.

"You're up early, Rockman," Netto said.

"I could say the exact same thing for you, Netto-kun," Rockman replied.

"Ha ha very funny." At that, Netto stuck his tongue out that the little blue navi. "So, that aside, what shall we do today? It's only 8:00 AM, and I'm already bored."

His stomach started to grumble.

"Why not go eat something before you die of starvation," Rockman said teasingly and laughed.

Netto rolled his eyes at Rockman, but grabbed his PET and went downstairs for breakfast. Surprisingly, his mother wasn't down there. Perhaps she was still asleep as it was really early for a Sunday.

That didn't matter, though, as he acquired quite a bit of culinary skills from his mother. He decided that he shall make curry this morning.

"Curry for breakfast?" asked Rockman.

"Why not? Curry is great for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert!!" Netto replied as a large grin swept his face.

"If you say so."

One Hour Later

Netto placed three plates and glass cups on the table, scooped a small serving of rice and curry for each one, and poured a glass of water for himself, a glass of coffee for his father and a glass of tea for his mother.

As he headed upstairs to wake his parents, they were already up and dressed. Surprised to find Netto up so early, on a Sunday, no less, they smiled at him.

"Good morning, Netto," they both said in unison and giggled.

"You're up early," said Yuuichiro [his father] said.

Before Netto could say a word, Haruka [his mother] smelled something good and went downstairs while he and his father followed.

"Netto, you made breakfast for us today? How nice of you!" said Haruka.

"Yup! I woke up really early today and was hungry, so why not make breakfast for all of us while I was at it," replied Netto.

"Instead of talking, why don't you two start eating?" joked Yuuichiro.

"Like father, like son," Haruka replied and smiled before joining them for breakfast.

After breakfast, Netto couldn't quite decide on what to do as Rockman thought the same. Most of his friends were probably doing other things at the moment as none of them had called him yet.

He wasn't quite thinking straight and forgot that they all were out of the country... all except one. Rockman suggested that they step out for a bit, and Netto decided to take on his suggestion.

"Mom, Rockman and I are going to step out for a bit. Is that okay?" he asked his mother.

"Sure it is. Just make sure to be back home before dark, okay honey?"

"Gotcha. Bye mom! Have fun with... er... whatever you'll be doing."

"Ha ha, okay. Have fun, dear!"

Netto grabbed his jacket, scarf, and boots as he headed out. The sky was overcast as it snowed lightly. He just remembered that he left his PET inside.

"Netto-kun! You almost forgot Rockman!" shouted Haruka from inside the house.

_Oh snap_. "I'm coming!" he yelled back, running to his house. He took his PET from his mom and thanked her and left again.

"I can't believe you almost forgot me, Netto-kun. What's gotten into you? First, you woke up earlier than I did, on a **SUNDAY **no less, you only ate seven servings of curry this morning, and you almost left me at home! If there's something wrong, please tell me. I'm listening. You know I always am," said Rockman.

"It really is nothing, nii-chan. Maybe I'm just bored. I mean, when was the last time we were given a mission? I even-"

"Yes, Netto-kun?"

"No, it's nothing. Hey, let's go to the park! Last one there is a rotten pot of curry!"

"If you hadn't already noticed, I'm right in your hand."

"Right right right. Let's go."

= At the Park =

Netto sat on the swings, looking like he was thinking, but he also looked saddened. Rockman noticed this and asked, "Netto-kun,_ please _tell me, what's wrong? You look sort of upset, but how can I help you if you don't tell me what's wrong. Don't bother saying there's nothing wrong; I can sense it."

"Huh oh. Fine, it's just that, I don't know, I feel... sort of... lonely at times. I don't really know how to explain it."

"Oh, you mean because Meiru's vacationing in France, Yaito's back in England for now, Dekao's at school in India, and Tohru's studying penguins at Antarctica? Well... you still have me." Rockman smiled softly.

"Yeah, I suppose, but there's more..." Netto said more to himself than to Rockman. However, Rockman never misses a thing.

"Such as?"

Netto remained silent for a while until he noticed an ice cream truck. "Hey look, there's the ice cream man. I want ice cream!" Netto dashed to the ice cream truck and purchased a vanilla cone, licking it calmly.

Rockman thought, _Ice cream trucks in this weather. Today really is a weird day... Hmm..._

"The snow's pretty, isn't it nii-chan?" At that, Netto dropped backwards onto the snow and began making snow angels.

"Yes, it certainly is," Rockman replied, more relieved to see that maybe his younger brother wasn't feeling too down anymore.

_Ole~! Ole~! Saa tachiagare. Shouri no hana wo mune ni kazashite. _It was a call from someone. Netto answered and recognized a familiar voice.

"Hello? Oh okay. Sure. Mhmm. No. Yeah. Where? Why? Okay. See you soon. Bye. Wait, what? Fine, bye," Netto said into his PET.

"Come on Rockman, we gotta hurry! No time to waste!" Netto told Rockman. Being inside the PET, he knew well what was going on.

"Right behind ya, or with you, rather, in this case."

* * *


	2. Rebellious People

* * *

**Chapter 2: Rebellious People**

Netto gathered at the crowded Apple store, pushing his way through the crowds of people as some of them randomly yelled things like, "Get back in line, kid!" or "Go to hell," and the list goes on and on. There was only one reason why people would say such things-

"GIVE US OUR DAMN iPHONES!!" yelled people from the crowd.

[[Me: Shut up, damn you people. I'm _trying _to tell a story here!]]

"We don't care, just give us our mother effin iPhones!"

[[Me: . . . NETTO HURRY UP AND FIX THE PROBLEM!! _Everyone knows how Apple fanboys/fangirls are..._]]

"E... Enzan. I'm here? What's the problem?" said Netto.

"If you haven't already noticed, Hikari, that there's a virus within this Apple store's computers, and now there are over a hundred angry people that will eat us whole if we don't take care of it," he replied. "Plug in, Blues! Transmission!"

"But I thought Apple's don't get viruses. . ."

"Netto, this is no time to kid around, although I must admit, that **IS **true."

"Fine, fine. Plug in, RockmanEXE! Transmission!"

Rockman and Blues landed within the store's network, seeing not just one, but many Mettool viruses. They were swarming everywhere around the network, while some of them honestly tried their hardest to text with the virtual iPhones.

The sight was unbelievable, none the less.

"You've got to be kidding me," said Blues while Enzan fed him a WideSword battle chip.

"I guess not everyone can wait to get an iPhone," joked Rockman, as he shot as many Mettools he could with his Rock Buster.

Blues couldn't help but smile a little when Rockman said this, and Rockman did see that. Knowing that Blues never smiled (unless he was an evil Dark Blues), he himself smiled a bit, and his face just barely became a shade of light pink.

Blues, like Rockman, never misses a thing, and his own face started matching his armour a bit more, although, no one could really tell because half of his face is covered, and he was mostly red, so his face could blend just fine.

Rockman was too busy with his own thoughts and shooting the crap out of the viruses to even notice anything more.

Blues slashed at a field full of viruses with his WideSword while Netto gave Rockman a shotgun. The wide-radius impact deleted many of the viruses, but there were still a lot of them.

However, being only Mettools (a noob virus), it didn't take them much longer to eliminate them all. A few mini bombs did the trick.

After the swarm of little Mettools were eliminated, Rockman and Blues logged out of the network, but just as Rockman logged out, he caught a glimpse of a tiny light in the corner of his eye.

Everything seemed back to normal though, but the crowd was just as rowdy as ever.

"Like, oh my god, I can't like, thank you guys enough for like, saving my entire store!" exclaimed the store's manager. "To show our sincere thanks and gratitude, we present both of you with these..." she reached into a box somewhere behind her, "little iPod socks! Aren't they adorable?"

Netto and Enzan looked at each other, then at the socks, then at the manager, then at each other again, then at the socks once more and took them.

"Um... well... we don't know what to say. Thank you..." the duo said.

"You're welcome, kiddies. Now run along, as you can see, my associates and I have much work to do," said the manager, as she pointed out to the rough crowd just a few feet from them.

"Forgive us. Have a nice day!" Enzan and Netto said.

Just then, everyone felt a little rumble in the ground. Little, bigger, bigger, bigger, bigger, **bigger, bigger, BIGGER!** In fact, it became so large that the streets cracked, making many shipments of iPhones fall into them.

They were lost forever. Netto unfortunately lost his balance and was about to follow the fate of the poor iPhones.

"Someone please help me!" Netto screamed as loud as he could. Luckily, he was light and fit enough to hold on to the edge of the crack for a few seconds, but his hand was slipping fast. Enzan heard his distress call, and without any second thoughts he rushed down to rescue his unlucky rival. He grabbed both of Netto's hands and heaved him up with the best of his abilities. Netto then met face to face with his saviour.

"E... Enzan. You... you... thanks," he said. A rosy red shade flashed across his face.

"You... you're... wel... welcome... Netto," Enzan replied. He turned away quick enough before Netto was able to see any red across his face.

"Yeah, damn these Japanese earthquakes," Netto laughed and sighed. He had almost been consumed by the city's infrastructure just by helping people get their iPhones earlier. Speaking of iPhones, the crowd wasn't very pleased. Not wasn't very... not at all.

"We want our iPhones!!! We want our iPhones!!!" they marched and chanted and yelled, though they obviously saw the fate of the devices. One would have to be insane to remain at the clutches of those Apple-obsessive consumers. Really insane.

"Umm, Enzan, let's get out of here..." Netto said.

"I couldn't agree more, for once," Enzan joked with Netto.

"Hey!"

They both stood up and fled the scene as stealthily as they could. They finally arrived at Netto's neighborhood when he realized that the sky wasn't as bright as it was before.

"Um, Enzan, it's getting late. I must go home now... Goodbye?" Netto told Enzan.

"I see. Do you need a ride home?" replied Enzan.

"No, my house is just over there," Netto pointed to his house just down the street.

"Oh, okay. Bye Netto-kun."

At that, Enzan smiled and waved goodbye to Netto. Netto dashed down the street to his house and was welcomed warmly by his parents before the door closed. Enzan continued staring at the Hikari's front door for a while more before he called his limousine and went home.

"Enzan-sama. You seemed to be in quite a state of thought back there. Is there something wrong?" asked his faithful navi, Blues.

"No, there's nothing out of the ordinary, Blues."

"As you wish."

No, there certainly was something, but he just couldn't quite figure out for himself yet. Plagued by the thought, he tried to forget about it and remembered something else:

the tremendous amount of paperwork he had to complete before he had to rush to save the computers that supposedly aren't supposed to have viruses. That made him forget instantly.

* * *


	3. Normal Netto

* * *

**Chapter 3: Normal Netto**

= At Netto's House =

Netto dashed upstairs when his mother called him. "Netto, aren't you going to eat dinner?"

"No thanks, mom. I'm not quite hungry right now."

"Netto? Not hungry? Are you sure you're not sick?" Being the caring mother she is, she came up to him and felt his forehead. "You feel fine enough. Well, if you're really sure, I'll just leave some in the fridge, okay honey?"

"Okay, thanks mom!" Netto continued up the stairs with a bright smile on his face.

"I'm glad that Netto is happy again," Haruka said after Netto closed his door. "That's the happiest I've seen him so far, although, not everything seemed right. He never skips a dinner..."

"Well, I'm glad too. I guess he was just bored, that's all. He was given a mission today at the Apple store, so he must have been tired after coming home. True, though, not all seems normal..." Yuuichiro said.

"Netto-kun, what are you so happy about?" Rockman asked. "Don't say 'nothing' again... I... I... I could have l... lost you today." Rockman became a bit teary eyed.

"Fine, I won't say 'nothing'... we finally had a mission! It was small, but it was something. I've been waiting for a mission ever since Beast Plus ended and the whole Ryuusei no Rockman crap started." he replied. "And don't worry, Rockman. I'm still here."

Rockman stopped his tears. "Hey! I like that show!"

"Sorry Rockman. It's not that I hate it. It's just well... One of the main characters looks just like you! He's even named after you. What a rip off!"

"I suppose..."

Silence filled the room for quite a bit when Rockman noticed that Netto had school tomorrow.

"Netto-kun... it's time to finish your homework. Tomorrow's Monday, which means school-"

Netto laughed. "Ha ha, I already finished my homework this morning before you woke up!"

"No freakin' way. You did your homework, that early, on a Sunday, no less?" Rockman almost fained at the sound of that, but to his surprise, Netto backed up his claim well by showing his brother a stack of finished homework.

Rockman hadn't bothered asking Netto if he was really okay; he'd just deny the claim again. He wished his brother would share his thoughts more with him, though.

They trusted each other more than anyone else in the world, but Rockman felt as if his brother had somewhat trusted him less. No, that wasn't it. He knew Netto better than anyone else. Netto would never trust him less! At that point he sighed and felt a bit more relieved.

"Well, I'm off to bed. It's 7 PM right now. Night Rockman!"

_But it's only 7 PM. Why would he sleep this early? On a Sunday, no less? Well, as long as he finished his homework... Plus today must have worn him out, _Rockman thought. He didn't argue back and went into sleep mode himself.

= The Next Morning =

"No... please... no... I don't want you to go... Come back... Come back... Don't leave me..." Netto groaned in his sleep. "NOOO!!!"

He jumped up and out of bed after that horrific scream. _What was that all about? _He thought.

"Rockman, what time is it?" he asked his navi.

"Well, Netto, if you already haven't noticed, it's time to BE at school!" Rockman yelled.

"Oh crap." Netto hurriedly washed his face, brushed his teeth and changed into clean clothes, rushing downstairs to grab his breakfast, lunch, PET and backpack.

"Tnks mm bmm mm!" Netto yelled as he rushed out the door on his skates before his mother had a chance to say anything. He still had food in his mouth.

_Now that's the Netto I know. _Haruka thought as she smiled. _Wait, I shouldn't be happy that he's late for school again, though._

"Why the hell didn't you wake me up earlier, Rockman?!"

"I tried to! But _no_, you were too busy screaming 'Don't leave me' and 'Come back'! What was that all about anyway?"

Netto tried hard to remember, but he couldn't pull himself to remember. He remained silent for a moment.

"Netto-kun?" Rockman asked.

"Mmm? Yeah? Oh, it's nothing. Anyway, I'd better hurry if I don't want Mariko-sensei yelling at me once again."

= In Netto's Classroom =

He spoke too soon.

"HIKARI NETTO. ONCE AGAIN, YOU ARE LATE TO CLASS. I WAS ENJOYING THE PAST FEW WEEKS WITH YOU ON TIME, BUT WHY THE CHANGE NOW?!"

Netto gulped as the class started laughing and blushed as he went to his seat and sat down.

"I'm sorry, Mariko-sensei. I finished Sunday night's homework, though," Netto said as a slight smile crept upon his face.

"You're forgiven. Wow, you actually turned in your homework, on a Monday, no less. Your lateness is excused," she replied as she took his homework from him and smiled. The entire class became silent. Mariko-sensei must love homework to excuse lateness.

[[Me: Blah blah blah, that's enough for school. Nothing else will happen besides the normal boring school stuff; All of his friends aren't even in the country, for crying out loud! Well, almost all of them... Anyway...]]

= After School =

"Damn it, where could that blasted piece of paper be at?!" yelled a very unhappy Enzan. He looked as if he had been playing hide and seek in his office, and it looked like hell broke loose there too. He frantically searched everywhere, but to no luck, he couldn't find it.

"Sometimes, I hate being the V.P. of IPC..."

"If I may, Enzan-sama, perhaps you should look somewhere outside your office?" Blues asked.

"Blues, I had it with me the whole time up until we got here. Where else would it be?" he replied.

"As you wish."

"Maybe it's in there... no... how about there..."

Meanwhile, Netto was walking back home from school. He stopped by the neighbourhood park before he went home and sat on the swings smiling. _I finally got to see him again._

"Netto-kun, what are you smiling about?" Rockman asked.

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just a really nice day today, all snowy and stuff, ya know?"

"Really?"

"Really."

A cold wind started blowing, making Netto shiver.

"Netto-kun, I think we should get home now. You might catch a cold."

"You worry too much, Rockman. But I suppose you're right. Let's go." He gave a smirk to Rockman as he got up and started walking.

Netto was about to take a few more steps when the cold wind blew a piece of paper into his face, startling him for the moment.

"What the hell, people should learn how to throw their trash in the bins. What is this blasted piece of paper anyway?" Netto looked at the piece of paper.

It had a bunch of mumbo-jumbo on it, but before he threw it away, he caught the letters IPC in the top left hand corner of the paper. He continued examining it until something else caught his eye.

It was Enzan's signature. Upon the thought, Netto brought the paper to his chest and looked up at the sky, smiling. _Enzan... _he thought.

"Earth to Netto!" Rockman called out. "What are you doing?"

"Ehh... I was reading the paper of course! What else would I be doing?"

"Well, it seems as if you were doing more than just looking at the piece of paper. What is it anyway?"

"Well, it has the letters 'IPC' on it and Enzan's signature is on the bottom, so it must belong to him. Only one way to find out."

"We're... we're... going to Enzan's?" Rockman asked, slightly blushing but not enough for Netto to notice.

"Why are you talking like that? What, are you _scared _of Blues?" Netto teased.

"Oh, no reason. And I'm NOT scared of Blues! Let's go." _I could never be scared of Blues... _he thought.

"Come on, Rockman. There has to be a reason. Are you feeling well? Besides, you ask me that ALL the time!"

"No really, Netto. It's nothing. Let's go before the weather worsens."

"If you say so."

* * *


	4. Going to Enzan's

* * *

**Chapter 4: Going to Enzan's**

Upon arriving at Enzan's majestic estate, Netto just had to stare in awe. _Damn, that's HUGE, _he thought. He rang the doorbell, only to be greeted by a very unhappy voice coming from the intercom.

"Look, if you're selling girl scout cookies, I already-"

"ENZAN! It's me, Netto! Open the damn door, will ya?" Netto screamed.

"What are you doing here, Netto-kun? Can't you see that I'm a bit busy?"

"A _bit_? Just open the door, will ya? I have something that you might be interested in."

"What do you have that could possibly interest me?"

Netto knew Enzan wasn't in the mood for joking around with. He immediately flashed the paper to the camera. Enzan, without saying another word, opened the gate and unlocked the door.

"Netto... how did you... where... when..." Enzan greeted Netto at the door.

"Would you believe me if I told you?" Netto joked.

"Not really, but thank you soooooooo much Netto! I can't tell you how long I've been looking for this blasted piece of paper!"

"Hey!! But in all cases, I can tell; what little black hair you had is gone."

Enzan blushed a bit but invited Netto into his house. He couldn't possibly not have let Netto back out into that snowstorm.

"So, what was that piece of paper for?" asked Netto.

"Nothing, really," Enzan replied.

"So I see. Well, if it was really nothing, why did you suddenly become all happy when I gave it to you?"

Enzan thought for a bit, knowing he couldn't argue anymore with Netto. Or could he? In all cases, he had eyes that were just too cute to argue with. _Did I just think what I think I thought? _Enzan thought.

"Fine. This paper is a contract between my company and another company. I bought a failing company, so now they must oblige by my rules and whatnot. It shows them my superiority upon them. Happy now?"

"I see, Mister _Superior_. Well, I should get going now. Bye Enzan."

"Wait, Netto-kun... do you... perhaps... w... want to stay a bit? You know, since it's really stormy outside and whatnot?"

"I suppose... but I'd have to call my mom first."

"Please do, Netto-kun."

_Why does he keep calling me Netto-kun? Doesn't he usually call me Hikari or idiot? Well, it doesn't matter; he sounds cute calling me that instead, _Netto thought. _Wait, did I really think that? No way in hell..._

_Oh yes you did think that,_ a voice in Netto's head claimed.

"NO I DIDN'T!!!" Netto yelled.

Rockman, Blues and Enzan all stared at him with amusement.

Netto smiled sheepishly and blushed. "S... sorry. Hehehe..." The other three shrugged and let Netto call his mother.

Netto called him mom and informed her about his staying at Enzan's place. She was more than happy at the idea, insisting that Enzan could use a friend like him. Netto blushed at what she said before saying goodbye.

"Yeah, she let me stay. So, Enzan..." started Netto, "whatcha up to?"

"Oh me? Nothing really, just finishing up some paperwork. Are you hungry or anything? We could order out-"

"Yeah! Oh, and, there's no need to order out. I'm a bit handy in the kitchen, if I do say so myself."

"Well, if you really say so. It's this way... follow me."

Enzan led Netto into his gourmet kitchen. Netto's whole house could fit in it, and his house isn't even that small! Netto stared in awe for a while before being snapped back into reality by Enzan.

"Uhh, Netto, we're here."

"Right right right. Let me get started. Umm... mind helping me find where everything is?"

Enzan took a few minutes explaining to Netto where everything was before he got started cooking.

"So, what do you want to eat?" asked Netto.

"Umm, anything is fine, as a matter of fact," replied Enzan.

"So I see. Is curry okay?"

"Well, I've never had curry before, but be my guest."

"NEVER had curry? What the hell? Why? What have you been eating all these years?"

"You know, the usual. Coffee, sandwiches, the usual."

"The usual?! Sit down, Enzan. You NEED to taste what REAL food tastes like."

"Bossing me in my own house, I see?" Enzan chuckled.

Netto stuck his tongue out and began to cook. Things _really _started cooking now. All Enzan could see was a blur moving around in his kitchen, but whatever that blur was making smelled really savory.

All he could do for now was wait, watch and smell.

"All done! Here ya go!" Netto smiled happily. He gave himself and Enzan a plate of curry, rice and meat and poured them both a glass of milk to ease the spiciness.

Netto ate his meal like a monster, grabbing more servings of curry and rice after finishing the last serving. Enzan wasn't even halfway done with his first serving yet.

"What, is it not good, Enzan?" asked Netto.

"No, no. It's delicious. Really. But how could you eat that much and still retain a small, sexy frame?" replied Enzan. What a mistake he had just made.

He blushed furiously after realizing what he had done and looked down at his plate of curry before Netto could see his blush. Netto didn't miss what he had just said and choked.

"_What_ did you just say Enzan? Did you just call me sexy?" Netto too blushed, but Enzan was too embarrassed to look at Netto._ Why am I blushing? _Netto thought.

"N... no. I d... didn't. I meant to say small."

"But you _did _say small..."

"No, I said small and skinny!" Enzan became even redder.

"No, you said small and _sexy._"

"What I meant w... was small and skinny..."

"Whatever."

Enzan then slammed his fists on the table and yelled at Netto. "I did mean small and skinny, okay?!"

"Okay okay, Enzan. Sorry, jeez."

The rest of the dinner lasted in utter silence. After dinner was finished, Netto offered to clean up, but Enzan denied the offer since it was his house, and Netto was the guest. Before Netto could say anything further, Enzan grabbed all the tablewares and placed them in the dishwasher.

"Too late, Netto," Enzan smiled and stuck his tongue out at Netto. He wasn't angry at Netto anymore since it wasn't his fault for saying sexy. Or was it?

"No fair, you left me with no choice!" Netto said. "Well, I guess I should go for now. It's almost 9 PM. Goodbye En-"

"Netto-kun, wait... why d... don't you sl... sleep over for tonight? You can't possibly walk out in that snowstorm like this at this time of night."

"I suppose you are right, but couldn't you call for a ride for me or something, if you don't mind my asking?"

Enzan was quiet for a bit, knowing that Netto was right. He really wanted Netto to stay over though and decided that lying was the only way he could make him. He wouldn't take a chance at having Netto freeze to death while walking home.

"M... my limo is under maintenance. Yeah! All of them are, actually. As you can see, the temperatures are really low, which froze the fuel lines within the engine and burst, so they need to be fixed. I'm sorry, Netto, but don't I think you should walk in weather like this."

Netto sighed. "Fine, Enzan. You know, you sound a lot like my mother. Let me notify her of the plan, then." He then laughed before calling his mother.

His mother hesitated at the idea at first because he had school the next day, but she eventually let him, as long as he finished all his homework and be a polite guest.

He thanked and bid his farewell to Haruka and hung up.

Enzan smiled. "I'll go set up a room for you. You can wait in the living room over there until I get back." He was excited as this was the first time anyone stayed over with him, but it wasn't just anyone... it was Netto.

"Enzan... do you have any spare clothing for school tomorrow? I sort of came a bit unprepared since I hadn't planned on staying over here for the night," Netto asked after he had gotten himself adjusted to his room for the night.

"I think I do. Let me go check," Enzan replied, heading back into his room to search for clothes for Netto. About fifteen minutes later, he went back into the room he let Netto stay in.

"Uhh, here Netto. I know they're a bit loose, but they should be fine since you're not that much smaller than me anyway." He blushed a bit.

"Thanks Enzan." Netto too blushed a bit. "Oh and Enzan, could you... perhaps... help me with my homework?"

"I was going to finish up some paperwork, but okay."

"Netto-kun, I told you to do your homework by yourself! You won't learn that way..." Rockman whispered to Netto.

"Shut up, Rockman! How am I supposed to do these stupid math problems if I don't know how?" he shot back at Rockman quietly.

"Well, maybe if you had stayed awake in class for a minute or two then..."

"It's okay, Rockman, I'll help Netto with his homework," said Enzan.

"But I thought you had some paperwork to do." said Netto.

"I said I'd help, okay? Now let me see that..."

_Why is he being so nice to me all of a sudden? _Netto thought. _He wasn't quite as friendly to me before today... Maybe... nahhh._

"So you see, you have to do the same things for each side of the equation, otherwise your answer will come out totally wrong. Cancel one side of the variables and solve. That's it," Enzan said.

"Ohhhhh now I get it. That's all? Thanks a bunch Enzan!" said Netto, happily.

"You're welcome." Enzan smiled at Netto. He looked way too cute when he was happy. At the thought of that, he blushed even more.

Netto was able to finish his mathematics homework without further assistance, and pretty soon he was falling asleep. It was already 10 PM, and he needed to go to school tomorrow.

Netto went into the bathroom to change into the pajamas Enzan had loaned him, and when he came out, a blush flashed on Enzan's face.

"Enzan, what's a tomato doing on your face?!" Netto asked surprised.

The "tomato" became "riper." "It's not a tomato! Anyway, I must continue my paperwork. Night Netto," he replied.

"Okay. Thanks again, Enzan. Good night!" Netto slowly and softly said, feeling a little warm around his cheeks.

"Good night, Netto," Enzan replied. The blush remained on his face as he turned off the lights and closed the door behind him.

Netto couldn't fall asleep though, even though he was really sleepy. Too many thoughts roamed his mind.

_I noticed Enzan blushing quite a bit recently... why? Could it be... nahh. It couldn't be, could it? Why is he all of a sudden asking me to stay over? It's not like my house was that far away. I know it was snowing really hard, but by the tone of his voice, it was as if he had WANTED me to stay over. Well, for some reason, I WANT to stay over too... Hmm... and he acted so nicely around me. Could it be that he's finally opening up to me? That could be it, but it sure seems to me he's opening up quite fast. Was that his true self? Maybe being a jerk was only a false identity of his? What if... nah. He's my friend and all, but it can't be more than that, can it? He's just a friend. Argh! Why do I keep thinking about Enzan!? These thoughts are giving me a headache... maybe I should try to sleep now. But no, I can't. No matter how much I try to forget, I just can't. Because... because..._

… _Because I think I like him..._

_

* * *

  
_


	5. Rockman&Blues

* * *

**Chapter 5: Rockman&Blues**

Rockman was bored, and he couldn't go to sleep, not when _he _was there. He got up from his virtual bed and paced around in his guest room in Enzan's house's network. He heard footsteps approaching him and pulled out his RockBuster just to be safe.

It was only Blues.

"Blues, you scared me half to death, creeping up on me like that," said Rockman.

"The Oh-So-Famous-Rockman, scared? I find that hard to believe," replied Blues. Rockman just stood and blushed.

"Why are you awake, Blues?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

"I asked first!"

"Because a certain navi kept walking noisily, which disturbed my sleep." Rockman blushed even more.

"Sorry, Blues."

Blues remained silent. _Rockman is so adorable when he's all innocent and stuff,_ he thought._ Wait a minute, I have feelings? I'm merely a program designed by Enzan to aid him with tasks and such. Why am I degrading myself, Enzan's not my master. He's my friend... a close friend. But why is it I feel something more for Rockman than I do for Enzan?_

"Blues? Are you okay, Blues?"

"Yes Rockman, I'm fine. Listen... since you're not asleep, do you perhaps... want to go to Net City with me?"

Rockman turned a dark shade of red that even he couldn't hide from Blues while Blues did the same.

"I'd love to go into the city with you. Just let me leave a note for Netto first." Rockman thought that he shouldn't leave Netto all alone, but Enzan was in the house with him, and he was only going to step out for a bit...

"You really care for Netto-sama, don't you, Rockman?"

"Of course I do! He's my brother _and _best friend."

"So I see."

"Do you care for Enzan-sama, too?"

"With all my heart."

Rockman, a bit discouraged, remained silent. He then said, "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's head to the city!"

They both stepped into the link of Net City, slowly strolling down the sidewalk of the main road. Everything looks so different at night. There were so many lights, the breeze was refreshing, and it was all so serene.

There were only a few navis out here and there, but that was pretty much it. Who would suspect that this was the bustling and famous Net City? Their first stop was a cyber cafe.

Blues ordered himself and Rockman some hot chocolate and toasted sandwiches. They sat down at the nearest table and ate in silence.

Rockman tried his best to avoid gazing at Blues, but he couldn't.

"Rockman, is the hot chocolate too hot? You seem a bit red." Blues asked.

"No, no, it's just fine. It's just that... well, you and I never hung out like this before."

"So I see." Blues knew there was more to that, though. _Please say it, Rockman._

"Anyway, lovely weather tonight, eh Blues?"

"It definitely is. A bit cold, but beautiful." _Like you. _"But do you want to see what's even more beautiful than this?"

"What is it?"

"Follow me and I'll show you."

After they finished eating their midnight snacks, Blues led Rockman to a secluded area somewhere in the hills behind a bunch of trees.

It was a lake, perfectly reflecting the moon and stars from above. Rockman opened in mouth in awe and stared at the peaceful lake. He had never seen anything like it. He gazed up into the sky afterwards, seeing how it was filled with stars and other spacious wonders.

"Blues... I... I don't know what to say. It's all so beautiful."

"I'm glad you like it."

They both took a seat on a grassy spot under a tree. It was still winter, and Rockman shivered a bit, but two arms wrapped around him.

Rockman wasn't cold anymore. He blushed furiously as he knew whose arms those were...

"Rockman? Want to know something more beautiful than this?"

"What is it, Blues?"

"You."

Rockman's eyes opened wide. His mind had all of a sudden become clear now. He had loved Blues, and here they were now, embracing under the moon and stars. Silent tears fell down Rockman's cheeks.

He didn't know what to say, and he didn't have to know what to say. Blues licked away his tears... their faces were now only a few centimetres apart.

_Those eyes are beautiful, _the two thought in unison.

Blues closed his eyes and softly brushed his lips against Rockman's.

_What is this feeling? _Rockman thought. He decided not to think about it now and enjoy every single moment right now. He threw his arms around Blues' neck and passionately returned the kiss.

Blues was startled by the sudden action but was rejoiced by every second of it. They let go some time later, each gazing into the other's eyes. They remained silent for a bit.

_I can't believe it... Blues just... kissed me! All this time, all the pain I've gone through. It's all gone now. I want to cry, but I just can't,_

Rockman thought. "I... I... I love you, Blues," he finally said.

Blues smiled softly. "I love you too, Rockman."

Blues let Rockman's head shift gently onto his lap and ran his hand through Rockman's hair. _It's so soft...like an Angel's. No, better._

They sat like this (or lied down, in Rockman's case) for a few serene and lovely hours. They decided that it was time to return home, as it was almost sunrise.

Hand in hand, the two blissfully walked back to their link, never more happy in their entire lives.

* * *


	6. Explosive Weekend

* * *

**Chapter 6: Explosive Weekend**

Today was now Saturday. Of course, Netto returned home on Tuesday, but he had been visiting Enzan every single day since then, since that's what friends do.

Netto was happily eating what seems to be an endless amount of breakfast, but his parents didn't care. The sadness that loomed over him for the past few weeks had disappeared.

How, they wondered, but it didn't matter. All that mattered was that he was happy.

"It's a nice day today, Netto. Why don't you come over to my lab? I have something to show both you and Rockman," Yuuichiro said.

"Sure thing, dad. I can't wait to see what you want to show us!" Netto exclaimed, grinning happily.

"Have fun, boys!" Haruka told the two before they headed out to Yuuichiro's Lexus.

"Aren't you coming too, mom?"

"Me? Sorry, I wish I could, but I have to go purchase some things."

"Aww, okay. Have fun, then," Netto sighed. He wished that their family could go out together more often.

Upon arriving at SciLab, Yuuichiro went to talk to some of his associates while Netto wandered off. The place seemed even larger, even though he had been there many times before.

He looked at some of the things on display and grabbed himself a couple of snacks from the vending machine.

"Ne, Rockman, I wonder what dad wants to show us. It seems like he's been talking forever..." Netto said in a somewhat annoyed tone.

"Be patient, Netto. He's no less busy here today than any other day," the green-eyed navi responded.

Netto rolled his eyes and found himself a place to sit at near the lobby. He started to fiddle around with his PET a bit when all of a sudden, the room started to shake.

_Of all days, why does there have to be an earthquake today?! _Netto thought as he ducked under the coffee table near the sofas. Things started to fall and catch on fire, and Netto became more afraid.

He couldn't move out from under the table now as some unidentified flying object may become identified much to his unwillingness to find out.

The temperature started rising immensely, and Netto began sweating quite a bit. He thought something fell on his left ankle when he turned around and saw an unidentified person in a lab coat grab hold of him.

Netto kicked and screamed, but the small boy was no match for the large adult. As he ran, things behind him started falling and exploding, rendering everyone behind immobile or dead.

Yuuichiro caught a glimpse of his son through the corner of his eye, but he was stuck under a desk and couldn't escape it.

"Meijin-san!" he yelled as he pointed to the large unidentified adult running out the door.

Meijin, luckily, wasn't inside the building at the time and started a pursuit after the fleeing adult with a now unconscious Netto on his back.

The pursuit ended rather quickly as the kidnapper threw Netto into a Chevrolet cargo van (a.k.a. the kidnapping van) and drove away. Meijin couldn't believe it.

Not only did Yuuichiro add a "san" at the end of his name, but Netto was gone! He let his breath catch up with him when he called the Japanese emergency telephone number, requesting firetrucks to SciLab.

They can figure out a plan to rescue Netto once everyone was in one piece... He spotted Netto's PET on the ground just before running back... Rockman was definitely not in the mood to talk.

Meijin ran back to SciLab, followed by the Net Police and a whole fleet of firetrucks. They managed to rescue most of the people there, but around ten people had perished in the flames.

"Hikari-hakase, we need to get you to the hospital! You can't go anywhere injured like this!" Meijin yelled at Yuuichiro.

"I can, and I will! I can't just let my son be kidnapped like that," he replied angrily. Yuuichiro moved around a bit before collapsing to the ground.

"Hikari-hakase!! Hikari-hakase!! Answer me!"

Yuuichiro woke up in a bright environment much unlike the one he had previously been at. He looked around and spotted his wife sitting on a chair in the corner. Upon noticing her husband wake up, Haruka ran to his side and sobbed.

"Honey, you're awake!"

"Anything for you, my dear," Yuuichiro responded. Haruka kept on crying, and he gently, with all his strength, pat her head and wiped away her tears. "Where am I?"

"You're in the hospital dear. Please, rest for now."

Yuuichiro pondered upon the idea for now when he remembered a terrifying thought.

"What happened to Netto?" he demanded.

Haruka cried even more at the mention of Netto's name. She couldn't bring herself to say anything but instead kept on crying.

Meijin came into the room and was relieved to see Yuuichiro awake.

"Hikari-hakase... your son... I couldn't run fast enough... they escaped in a van... it's all my fault," said Meijin, slightly teary eyed.

Yuuichiro immediately got up, feeling a sharp pain travel through his entire body.

"Honey, you must rest and relax, you haven't fully recovered yet!" Haruka yelled.

"Haruka, dear, can't you see that our son is gone? If we don't act now, we may lose another son!"

"Yuuichiro, I told you to get back down! I know Netto's gone, but how are we supposed to find him with your critical condition like this?! I don't want you gone... I don't want Netto gone... but... but... we'll find him! I'll talk with the others for now. You, on the otherhand, need to to fully recover before you can do anything serious. Do I make myself clear?!" Haruka said with all her heart.

She didn't want to lose either Yuuichiro or Netto.

Yuuichiro knew that when his wife was as serious as this, he couldn't argue with her. He gently nodded and relaxed as best as his physical self could. Haruka leaned down and kissed her husband.

"Try to get some rest, dear. These are troubled times, but we will live through them. I will go talk with the others and see what I can do. You on the other hand, will and must stay here. Understand?" Haruka reassured her husband and exited the room.

"How's he doing?" Meijin asked Haruka.

"He's definitely not doing fine, but I believe he will recover."

"That's well. Now on to other matters. We'll meet in your house at your house tomorrow morning. For now, get some rest, Hikari-san."

Haruka hesitated a bit, but knew Meijin was right. She gave a quiet nod and drove home, sobbing at the wheel. This had been a tough day indeed, but she would remain strong, for her son and for her husband.

Back at home, Rockman wasn't faring too well without Netto. He sat down in the corner of his virtual room and sobbed for hours. His brother and best friend, gone? He didn't know what to do. He felt so helpless trapped inside his blasted PET.

_If only I was in the real world, I would have been able to do something, _he thought, as he cried quietly even more.

= At Enzan's House =

"What do you mean Netto's gone?!" Enzan screamed at Meijin, sobbing like crazy. "That can't be possible. How... when... where... Why?!"

He fell to the ground and covered his eyes. _It couldn't be true. Was Netto really gone? Why the hell hadn't I been there?! This never would have happened if I had been even the least bit helpful... _he thought.

Meijin put a hand on Enzan's left shoulder. "We will find him. I promise. Be strong, Enzan, we've dealt with situations like this before.

I will give out details tomorrow at the Hikari residents in the morning. For now, get some rest."

"I... I can't... N... N... Netto's... g... g... gone."

"Please, Enzan, get some rest. We will deal with this when everyone's more rested. It won't help if no one's rested and calm."

"Calm?! CALM?! You want us to be calm and rested at a time like this?! For all we know, Netto... Netto..." he can't bring himself to say it. He won't allow himself to think about it, but it had already crossed his mind.

Meijin helped Enzan up onto a sofa and reassured him they will begin everything they could the very next morning. Enzan gave up arguing, knowing that Meijin was right.

"Thanks, Meijin-san," he said.

Meijin smiled. "You're more than welcome, Enzan. And please, no need for formalities." Enzan smirked at this before he fell asleep...

Blues knew that Rockman wouldn't be okay. He couldn't bare to think about the pain his lover was going through, so he decided to give the little blue navi a visit. Rockman was still sobbing on the ground when he felt two arms tugging him.

"Blues..." Rockman quietly said as he allowed himself to lean on Blues' shoulder, letting Blues wipe off his tears.

"Rockman... don't cry. We'll do everything we can starting tomorrow, once everyone's more relaxed and well rested."

Rockman couldn't exactly find the words to say, so he just sobbed silently, cuddled in the arms of his lover...

"Thank you, Blues."

Blues smiled and kissed Rockman on the head. The two fell asleep, leaning gently on each other.

* * *


	7. Lost in More than Just Thoughts

* * *

**Chapter 8: Lost in More than Just Thoughts**

Regaining consciousness, Netto found himself chained up in a small room. He had barely remembered what had happened, and he wasn't intent on finding out. He was aching all over from being tossed everywhere like a toy, but he tried to sit up anyway.

He looked around, seeing nothing but darkness. There was absolutely no source of light in that room. Netto began to quietly sob. He had never felt more alone in his life. There was no family with him. There were no friends with him.

There was no Rockman with him. Worst of all, there was no Enzan with him. Netto curled up into a ball before hearing something like a closing door.

"I see our friend has finally awoken," a dark male voice sounded.

Netto responded weakly, "Who are you? What do you want with me?"

"Hush, little one. We'll get to that soon. For now, you need all the rest you can get. Ohhh yes, you will need all the rest you can get!"

[[Me: Everyone needs a rest now, don't they? I do too... ***yawn***]]

Netto didn't like the sound sound of that, but he was too weak to do anything. He remained curled up in ball, wishing that he was only dreaming... _I want to go home... _he thought, crying silently.

In a different room, the kidnapper was talking to yet another unidentified voice.

"Where the hell is that kid's net navi?" the other voice said. "I specifically told you get get them both!"

"I... I... I apologize, master. I shall get his blue navi to you," replied the kidnapper.

"Fine. Just get out of my sight until you have the navi. You know we can't proceed with our plans unless we have both of them..."

= At the Hikari Residence =

The next morning, the entire team (meaning anyone that wanted to find Netto) except Yuuichiro, since he was recovering at the hospital, assembled at the Hikari's house. They were in a better mood than they were the day before, thanks to their so called rest.

Meijin stood up before everyone, cleared his throat a bit and began his speech.

"Good morning, everyone. You all know why you're here today. Hikari Netto, age twelve, had been kidnapped the day before by an unsuspected male adult disguised as a scientist at SciLab. The details of the kidnapper in question are very limited, but we do know this. He is an average sized male man not much taller than I am, which means he was around two metres high. At the scene of the crime, he was dressed in a white lab coat, and he was seen wearing large black-tinted sunglasses. Judging from his gray beard, he was probably in his late fifties or early sixties, though we don't know whether or not the beard was fake. He was seen escaping in a whiteChevrolet cargo van, probably the Astro model from the mid nineties, but that remains unconfirmed. The van had only three windows: the two of them on front doors and the windshield itself. Most of the evidence that would have helped us locate the suspect more easily had been destroyed in the recent SciLab explosion, but there is one videotape that remains in good enough shape to be viewed."

Meijin inserted the tape into the VCR and played every part the kidnapper had appeared in. This video gave everyone a better idea of how the suspect looked at the scene of the crime, but as it was a videotape, the quality wasn't so great.

This was better than nothing, though, and the entire team began discussing possible options and strategies.

"Rockman, would you kindly pass this information on to Hikari-hakase? I'm sure he's eager to get the details," Meijin asked.

"Of course, Meijin-san. I'll be back in a bit-"

"No need for formalities..."

Rockman sheepishly smiled and logged out of the Hikaris' network. Everyone else giggled a bit. Positive energy like this would sure aid them in finding Netto.

_Hang in there, Netto-kun. We're going to get you back. I promise, _Enzan thought, as he gave a large sigh and heaved himself off of the couch and walked over to the front window.

Looking outside, he thought, _Why would anyone want Netto for? Of course everyone would want Netto, he's perfect in every way..._ A hint of red flashed across his cheeks for what seemed to be the hundredth time that week.

_But why would some guy who obviously had bad intentions want Netto for? What did Netto possibly have that made someone do such a thing? These thoughts are plaguing me too much! I need a cup of coffee..._

As Enzan walked over to get a cup of coffee, he realized that the one person who would have some of the answers to his questions was none other than Yuuichiro himself.

After all, he had been abducted by Doctor Regal once, so who wasn't to say his son would follow in the same path? _No... Doctor Regal doesn't exist anymore, does he? Maybe Netto's abduction had something to do with this? Only one way to find out._

"Meijin-san, I'm going to step out for a bit, if you don't mind. If you need me for anything, please call me," Enzan said, imagining a very pissed off Haruka if he said anything about disturbing Yuuichiro during his recovery.

"I understand. And please, no need for-"

"Whatever."

Enzan called up a limousine and went to the hospital Yuuichiro was at. He located his name on the database system and proceeded to go visit him. He gently knocked on the door of his room.

"You may come in," answered Yuuichiro. "Oh, hello Enzan. What brings you here?"

"Good morning, Hikari-hakase. I came here to ask a few questions, but first, how are you feeling at the moment?" replied Enzan.

"Meh, I can't really complain. Well, actually, I can. I'm stuck here here for quite some time I see!" Yuuichiro chuckled at that.

"I see. Anyway, it's about Netto, if you don't mind. I think it may have something to do with when you were abducted by Doctor Regal some time ago."

"I see. What is it that you would like to know?"

"Well, you see, I was wondering if Netto had anything that someone would want, such as the algorithms that were transcribed into your eyes."

"It may seem like it, I understand. In truth, though, I haven't done anything to Netto that my father had done to me. With the modern rise of technology, Netto's life would be in too much danger if I had done such a thing."

"I see. There has to be a motive for Netto's kidnapping, though. If we perhaps find the motive, we can locate him... Sorry for asking,

Hikari-hakase. Thank you for your help, though."

"No need to be sorry. I know you really want to find Netto, so I'll try my best to help as much as I'm able to."

Enzan smiled a bit as a thin line of red crossed his face. "Th... thank you, Hikari-hakase. Well, I'll leave you to rest for now. Bye."

"Goodbye, Enzan."

* * *


	8. Blues' Misery

Back at the Hikari residence, everyone was all silent in thought. They didn't know what to say to one another, and they couldn't figure out any plan to rescue Netto yet.

Whoever the kidnapper was went through a great deal of trouble to destroy as much evidence as he possibly could. The silence was broken when Enzan entered the room. All eyes were fixed upon him.

"Enzan-kun! Where have you been?" Commissioner Kifune asked.

"I just needed a breath of fresh air, sir."

"So I see. While you were gone, we talked for a bit and came up with this. The person who took Netto obviously wants his power.

However, his potential would only be reached if it is combined with Rockman's, meaning they would have to Cross Fuse."

Enzan's eyes widened. "What you're saying is that... they're going to take Rockman too?"

"That is what we believe. So here's our plan. We purposely let Rockman get captured, but before we do that, we program a tracking device within him."

"How'd you guys think of this in the first place?"

Rockman interrupted, "Remember, Enzan, back when we were at the Apple store? Well, I just happened to remember that before we logged off, I noticed something at the corner of my eye. Whatever it was, I couldn't really tell, but I believe that it was the one behind the virus attack at the store."

"What does that have to do with our current situation?"

"Well, the virus attack must have been some sort of diversion. Since there were too many angry people surrounding the vicinity, no one would have suspected anyone like the kidnapper. While we were battling the viruses, someone must have planted something in the ground to cause the earthquake which almost consumed Netto."

"So you're saying that the earthquake was another diversion?"

"I believe so. I know our country is prone to such earthquakes, but it seemed all to suspicious that the epicentre was directly under the store itself, which is strange since the store is kilometres away from the nearest fault. Also, that area has never been subject to earthquakes before in all of history."

"Hmm."

"Also, I think that that won't be the last time we see that mysterious thing I saw back there."

Enzan looked out of the window again. He remained quiet in thought when Commissioner Kifune interrupted his thoughts. "Enzan, did you hear us?"

"Yes, sir," Enzan replied.

"Good. I think this plan would get us to Netto sooner than we thought. Let's just hope it follows through and that Netto is all right."

"I suppose. Well, shall we start then?"

Blues hesitated for a bit. _There going to let them catch MY Rockman? _He realized that that was the only way to get Netto back. Whatever evidence they had previously wasn't going to help them too much.

"We shall start now," Commissioner Kifune responded while he took Rockman's PET and placed it in his pocket. "Everyone, meet me back at the temporary SciLab building in an hour while I program the tracker."

Before he stepped out of the door, a rather round man and a purple haired woman stepped in. "Good morning everyone. Sorry we're late, but our car-"

Everyone stared at the people near the door. Two Commissioner Kifune's?! The Commissioner that placed Rockman's PET into his pocket pulled out a gun and held it to the other Commissioner's head.

"Anybody moves, and he dies!" said the gunman, who was obviously a fake Commissioner Kifune. He quickly pushed both Manabe and Commissioner Kifune to the ground as the darted into a full sprint out of the door, taking off his costume to remove any burdens.

Enzan ran do where Manabe and Kifune fell down and grabbed both of their guns that they had dropped and began a pursuit after the man. "Freeze! Or I'll shoot!"

The fleeing man laughed and responded with silence. He was very swift and nimble, making almost impossible for Enzan to target him properly. The man jumped into the same van he took Netto in earlier. Enzan wasn't about to let him go.

He ran up to a black Mercedes Benz S65 AMG that passed by and pointed the gun at the driver.

"Get out and no one will get hurt! Don't worry, I'm a Net Battler," Enzan said and showed the driver his PET identification.

The man in the car jumped out and obliged while Enzan hopped in, placed the car in gear and floored it. The V12 engine roared, and he was nowhere to be seen anymore.

"Enzan-sama, if I may, you're breaking quite a bit of laws. First of all, you're only fourteen-" Blues said as he tried to hold in his tears.

Rockman had been taken as well, and Blues' world had come down, crashing on him.

"I don't care, Blues! If we don't act, now, we'll never get Netto back!" Enzan shouted, teary eyed. Quietly, he said, "I won't lose him this time. I won't... because... because... because I love him..."

Enzan was a pretty good driver at high speeds for his first time behind a wheel. He was able to stay only several metres away from the kidnapping van for at least fifteen minutes before he saw the right side of his windshield shatter. The guy was trying to shoot him!

With his right hand on the wheel and his left hand wielding a gun, the tried shooting the tires of the van. If he killed the kidnapper now, there might not be a chance he'll find Netto again.

He was successful in popping the rear wheels, making the van lose control before slamming into a tree. The kidnapper quickly darted out of the van and shot at the Mercedes while Enzan ducked.

The kidnapper ran out of bullets, sending him into another sprinting frenzy into an alley. Enzan jumped out of the car and proceeded to chase after him with two guns in hand.

The man grabbed a fire escape ladder and heaved himself up with ease while Enzan shot a few round before hitting the man's right leg. The man slowed down a bit but continued fleeing. Enzan ran into the building and took the elevator to the roof.

He knew that the injury dealt to the man would make up get to the roof after he did, and he was right. The man was about to grab the edge of the roof when he heard a gun next to him.

"You're not getting away this time," Enzan said with anger.

The man smiled. "Nice job, kid. You managed to stop our plan from conquering the world. However, you'll never get anything from me." Right after he said that, he let himself go, falling to the ground below. He opened his eyes upon impact.

"What?! A mattress? Damn it!" he yelled.

"Sorry sir! The mattress delivery people accidentally dropped it out of the window!" a voice from an apartment unit above called out.

The man looked back down, only to find him surrounded by at least five guns.

"Freeze. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law," said the Net Police.

They police handcuffed him and searched for any property before leading him into their car. Enzan rushed downstairs and had Netto's PET returned to him.

"Young man, do you realize how many laws you had broken?" Commissioner Kifune yelled at Enzan.

Enzan replied in a panicking tone, "Sir, I only meant-"

"Enough! For now, we'll let you go since you captured this man." Kifune smiled and put a hand on Enzan's shoulder before walking away.

"That was a close one, eh Blues?" Not hearing a reply, he called out again. "Blues? That's right, I must have left him in the Mercedes."

"MY CAR!!!" a very unhappy man shouted. "You! You stole my car, and now at it! I'm pressing char-"

"Sir, don't worry, I'll pay you back for your loss," Enzan said as he took out a checkbook and scribbled on it before handing it to the man. "If you don't mind, may I have my PET back?"

The man just stared blankly and gave Enzan his PET back. "Umm, thanks for the check?"

"You're welcome. I'm sorry about your car though."

"Enzan, let's go back to headquarters," Manabe said. Enzan climbed into the car, relieved that they were so much closer to finding the one he loved.

Back at headquarters, the captured suspect refused to talk. Question after question, he would just smirk or play with his fingers.

"This won't be as easy as it looks..." Meijin said.

"You can count on that. Didn't he have anything on him besides Netto's PET and his gun?" asked Manabe.

"He did have a PET himself, but we didn't extract anything useful from it. However, we're putting it on quarantine in case someone or something tries to communicate with it."

Everyone turned around to hear a door slamming. They saw a blur move towards the suspect, kicking him where his legs met at.

"Where the hell's my best friend?!" the blur screamed before kicking him again in the same spot. "Speak!"

"Okay, okay I will! Please, just stop kicking me there!" the man said as he held his hands to where he was kicked at.

Two policemen restrained the girl, but she kicked his face one last time before being dragged out of the room.

"Meiru, what on Earth are you doing?" Meijin said.

"Getting him to answer all your damn questions, of course!" she replied.

"Well, that's no way to do it..."

"But see, he's answering now!"

"I can see. But how'd you know we were here in the first place?"

"I went to Netto's after my flight came back and heard everything..." She became teary eyed.

"So I see. Well, I guess I should say thanks, although you didn't have to give him THAT much pain."

_Pain? What pain. That certainly wasn't pain. What is more painful than having your best friend gone?!" _Meiru thought.


	9. Rendezvous Point

* * *

**Chapter 9: Rendezvous Point**

The man's PET started beeping.

"Clyde, where the hell are y-" the voice said. "So I see the famous Net Police has captured a man servant of mine. Well, no matter. I think you all know what to do if you want to see your dear friend alive again."

Netto popped up on the PET hologram. "Someone, please... help me," he weakly said.

"NETTO!! NETTO!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HIM?! ANSWER ME!" Enzan screamed at the mysterious man.

"I just had a little fun with him," the man replied, holding a gun up to Netto's head. "If you want to see him alive, bring me Rockman.

The rendezvous point is at the Sakura Tower, suite number 277. Bring him in one hour, or this gun may 'accidentally' slip." At that, he hung up.

Enzan's eyes widened, and he started sobbing. Meiru went to and hugged him. She had never seen Enzan like this before, especially sobbing towards Netto, but she felt utter sympathy for him when she saw him breaking down like that.

"What shall we do now, Commissioner?" Manabe asked him.

"Assemble our entire force at the tower. Meijin, you wait here in case we need to activate anything. Manabe, Enzan, you two come with me, and bring Blues and Rockman. Meiru, go home. This is too dangerous for you," he replied.

Meiru huffed and puffed a bit, but she understood and walked slowly out of the building. Manabe, Kifune, and Enzan went into a car and drove ahead of everyone else to the towers. The rest of the fleet remained close behind.

Once they arrived at the rendezvous point, Kifune told Enzan and Manabe to hide somewhere around the tower and infiltrate it on his command. The two passed the information on to the fleet through a radio, and everyone assembled their positions.

Kifune hesitated a bit and gulped before ringing the bell.

"Ah. Good evening, commissioner. I knew you had made the right choice. Good that you're alone. Come on in," the man replied.

The doors opened as Kifune stepped in and closed. The others had dared not move a muscle, fearing that they'll be caught.

"Welcome to my suite, commissioner. Nice to meet you, my name is Peter. Please, have a seat. Would you like anything to drink?"

the man, whose name was Peter, asked Kifune.

"No thank you, Peter," Kifune replied.

"As you wish. Now, on to more pressing matters. Do you have Rockman with you?"

"I do. Here he is." Commissioner Kifune took out the blue PET and showed it to Peter.

"That's excellent. I'll just take that from you-"

Commissioner Kifune held on tightly. "Where's Netto?"

"Oh riiiiight. I almost forgot about him. Don't worry, we'll end his misery after we're done here," Peter said as he threw a white power at Kifune, rendering him unconscious. Peter smiled as he went downstairs to Netto.

"Kid, I have someone that you'll probably be happy to see."

"Rockman... you... you... you... what are you going to do with him?" Netto replied.

"Oh, it's nothing really. All I'm going to do is rewrite his data so he answers only to me, and then the two of you are going to cross fuse with a specially designed Synchro chip for the job. Then, we'll take over the world, you and I." Peter smiled.

"That's not going to happen..." Netto tried to get up, but his previous beatings had rendered him too weak.

"Oh, I think it will. Don't worry, we'll end your misery soon enough. Muahahahahahahahahaha!"

Back outside, Manabe was desperately trying to call Commissioner Kifune, but she was unable to reach him. They had been waiting for at least an hour already, and they received no such signal from him.

She was eager to start the infiltration but can't go against the Commissioner's words. Enzan heard Netto screaming, and he couldn't wait any longer. He shot the door open and ran inside.

"Enzan!! Enzan!! Everyone, infiltrate the building now! I repeat, start infiltration!" Manabe yelled as she dashed inside after Enzan.

_Why does that boy seem to worry so much about Netto? _Manabe wondered.

Enzan ran everywhere on the first floor, following the sound of the screams.

"My, my. More play things. Shall we go greet them?" Peter spat. "Nahh, let's have a little fun. Why not let them find me? Then we'll really start playing games."

Peter continued typing random things on this computer. He was almost finished reprogramming Rockman and had gotten out the special Synchro chip before Enzan and Manabe burst into the room.

They were too late, though, and Peter slipped the chip inside Netto's PET, forcing them to cross fuse.

"You're just in time to witness my latest creation: a special Synchro chip that lets you cross fuse without the need of a dimentional area!" Peter shouted.

Black and purple lights whirled around Netto while he continued screaming in agony. After the light had cleared, a cross fused Netto and Rockman appeared, although this time, they were black and red. This couldn't be good.

"Now, my minion! Get rid of these rats!"

Netto jumped in front of Manabe and Enzan as he slashed a sword at the two of them. He had managed to harm them both before the rest of the police force followed in and aimed at the cross fused Netto. They were about to shoot when Enzan yelled.

"Stop!! Don't shoot him, that's Netto and Rockman!!" He turned his attention to Netto. "Netto, please, stop!"

"Don't bother talking to him. He can't hear anyone but me. You understand? He only answers to me!" laughed Peter. "Enough fooling around. Kill them all!"

Netto dashed back and forth, wiping out two police force members. Peter grinned heavily as his plans were going perfectly well.

Manabe ordered a full retreat of the police force, as they were no match for a single cross fused Netto and Rockman. As for Commissioner Kifune, she ordered a few police to carry him outside for now.

"Enzan, let's get out of here! It's way too dangerous!" she yelled at Enzan.

"No! I can't leave Netto behind! I've endured so much when he was gone..." Tears flowed out of his eyes. "He's just right here... I'm not about to lose him again..."

"Well, what are you waiting for? Kill him!" Peter shouted.

Netto ran to Enzan and held him against the wall, his feet dangling a few feet from the ground. Enzan looked into Netto's eyes, still sobbing.

"Enzan-kun!" Manabe yelled as she threw a vase at Netto. Netto just shot it with his Rock Buster and ignored her. He shot the surrounding pillars, which fell and cut off all contact from Manabe and the police force. It was now just Enzan, Netto/Rockman and Peter.

Netto held the sword to Enzan's neck slowly moved it closer...

"Netto-kun, please," he said, crying softly. "Don't do this..."

"What the hell are you waiting for? Kill him already!" yelled Peter.

"Netto, please! I love you!"

As soon as he said this, Netto's eyes opened in shock as he took a step back. A purple and black light swirled around them a few times. When the light had ended, he and Rockman had split up. His PET fell to the ground while he fell onto Enzan's lap. He then started to cry.

"E... E... Enzan..." he softly said. "I... I... I love... you... too."

"Argh! If you're not going to kill him, I'll kill him myself!" Peter said. He grabbed a gun from his desk and aimed it at Enzan's head.

"Enzan watch out!!!" Netto cried frantically. He pushed Enzan to the ground, receiving the gunshot himself instead.

"NETTO!!!" Enzan cried as he took out his gun and shot multiple rounds to Peter, killing him instantly.

"Netto-kun, wake up!! Please wake up, you can't leave me again. Please Netto! Netto!!"

* * *


	10. Light

* * *

**Chapter 10: Light**

Netto woke up surrounded my many strange machines and tubes. He looked around and saw balloons and mini gifts on the side table.

"Netto! You're awake!" Haruka said, quietly crying. She went up to her son and kissed him on the cheek. "Netto... you had us all worried... we thought... we thought... well that doesn't matter. You're awake."

The rest of the crew was also there. They looked at him and gave a polite nod while saying, "Welcome home, Netto." Relieved that he has awaken, they left the room, leaving only him, his mother and father and Enzan in the room.

"Good morning, Netto," Yuuichiro said, hugging his son. Netto tried speaking, but due to his condition, nothing was able to come out of his mouth.

The doctor came in. "Mister and Misses Hikari, may you please come into my office? I'd like to discuss some things with you."

"Okay," they both said in unison and left the room. "We'll be back soon, okay you two?"

Enzan nodded as Netto's parents left. He looked at Netto, softly sobbing.

"N... Netto. I'm glad you're all right now. You really had us worried, especially me." He stroked Netto's hair with one hand and held Netto's with another. "I don't ever want to lose you ever... never."

All Netto did was smile. _Don't cry, Enzan. I'm fine now. I just wish I could tell you... _Tears started flowing from Netto's eyes.

Enzan leaned down closer to Netto. Their faces were only a few centimetres apart, and enough red was on his face that Netto was able to feel it too, making a shade of red flash across his face as well.

_It's now or never... _Enzan thought. He went down further and softly kissed Netto on the lips. "I... love you, Netto."

More tears started flowing from Netto's eyes. _I love you too, Enzan._

Meanwhile, back at the doctor's office, Netto's parents were listening to what the doctor had to say.

"The bullet landed quite close to Netto's heart, but it's a miracle it didn't hit it. However, Netto will be paralyzed for quite some time as the bullet did much damage around the area. He'll need to stay here at the hospital for at least three months for recovery," the doctor said.

"I see," said Yuuichiro. Haruka cried on his shoulders. "There there, my dear. Netto's all right, you heard the doctor. It will take some time, but he'll be fine." He softly stroked her back. "Netto's our son. He's a strong boy. He will be fine."

He turned his attention to the doctor. "We thank you with all our hearts."

The doctor smiled and shook Yuuichiro's hand. "It was my pleasure." He placed a hand on Haruka's shoulder and said, "Don't worry, miss. Netto will be fully recovered as time passes." He left the two alone in his office.

Yuuichiro let his wife cry on his shoulder while he continued to rub her back. The worst was finally over now.

"Honey, let's get back to Netto now, shall we?" Yuuichiro asked his wife.

Haruka wiped the remaining tears and answered, "Yes, let's go."

Upon entering the room Netto was in, they were surprised at what they had embarked upon. Enzan was next to Netto, holding his and and ruffling his hair! Enzan noticed them and blushed heavily.

"Hikari-hakase! Hikari-san! I can explain-" he said.

The two smiled. "It's okay, Enzan, we understand," Haruka said.

"Then... you two aren't mad?"

"Of course not! Why would we be? As long as if that's what you really want."

Enzan smiled. "Thank you, Hikari-san."

"You're welcome, Enzan-kun. Well, I guess the two of us should leave you guys alone. We'll be at home if you need anything! Goodbye Enzan-kun. Goodbye Netto-kun."

"Goodbye." Enzan turned around and looked at Netto again. _God, he's beautiful._

Outside the door, a very unhappy Meiru was peeking in. _WTF?! Enzan... with MY Netto-kun?! _She started to hyperventilate, and all of the sympathy she had for the black and white haired boy had left her immediately.

She was about to step into the room when the rest of her friends stepped behind her.

"Meiru, what are you huffing and puffing about?" asked Yaito.

"Oh, me? It's nothing!" she replied, trying her best to conceal her anger.

"Well then, instead of standing here, why not go in the room?" asked Tohru.

"Right right right. That sounds like a grand idea. Let's... go."

Meiru, Yaito, Tohru, Dekao and Chisao stepped into the room and shouted, "SURPRISE!!"

Netto and Enzan stared at them with amusement before they themselves smiled.

"We hope you feel better soon! Here's a little something from us," Tohru said, giving Netto a real live penguin!

Netto nodded, indicating his thanks. _Wow, a real penguin! How cute._

Dekao and Chisao presented Netto with some of their famous homemade curry. _Yummy._

Yaito presented Netto with a few bags of new clothes. _That Yaito never changes. _Netto smiled.

Finally, Meiru presented Netto with some flowers and stuffed animals. She just put them on the side table next to him, smiled a bit and left the room. The other four went after her after saying their goodbyes to Netto. Why was Meiru acting like that?

"Meiru, what's the matter?" Yaito asked.

Meiru couldn't bring herself to say it. She was so angry and depressed that tears started flowing down from her eyes. As much as she didn't want to admit it, it was true. Netto liked Enzan better than he liked her. Meiru gave a sigh.

She was the one who never forgets things like that, nonetheless get over them in an instant, but today, she did. _If Netto's happy like that... maybe I should be too._

"Earth to Meiru! What's wrong, why are you crying?" Dekao asked.

"If you really want to know... I saw Enzan... he... he was being real friendly with Netto," she responded.

"Awww. That's cute," replied Yaito.

Meiru sighed. Come to think of it, it was a bit cute. _Maybe it's for the best of us if we remain only close friends, nothing more. _

"I suppose we should leave the two alone for now. Come on, guys. Let's go to the park or something!" Meiru finally said.

The other four just shrugged and agreed, following behind her to the park.

Meanwhile, back at SciLab, Meijin and Yuuichiro were hard at work to revert Rockman back to normal. He took quite a bit of beating by Peter reprogramming him, and the special Synchro chip didn't help either.

However, Rockman had gone through more than this, and they were able to fully bring him back to his original state without the need to use Windows Vista's System Restore.

"Ahh, finally. He'll be as good as new. He'll need a little rest though, but after that, he should be fine," Meijin said.

"That's good to hear. Come on, let's go grab a cup of coffee," Yuuichiro replied, chuckling. The two left, leaving Rockman alone for a few minutes. However, he wasn't alone anymore.

"Rockman..." Blues quietly said, gazing at the blue resting navi. Tears fell down his cheeks. "It's all over now, Rockman." Blues walked towards Rockman and ruffled his hair a bit. _Rest well, my love, _he thought before falling asleep right next to the navi of his dreams.

* * *


	11. Euphoria

* * *

**Chapter 11: Euphoria**

Half a year had passed by, and Rockman and Netto have both fully recovered. It was July, and the group of friends decided to go to the beach. Enzan offered everyone a ride, taking their things and placing them in the trunk of his limousine.

Everyone climbed in, and they headed to the least populated beach in Japan.

Once they arrived, all of them ran out of the limousine and smelled the fresh beach air. All except two. Netto and Enzan stayed back for a bit, grabbing their things before heading out to the front.

"We're finally here, eh Enzan?" Netto asked, smiling.

"We sure are, Netto-kun," Enzan replied. They followed the rest of the crew and set up their "settlement" next to the shores. The others were in no mood to wait, so they ran into the water as if their lives depended on it. Netto and Enzan just smiled.

"Hey, lovebirds. Aren't you two going to come in? The water's fantastic!" yelled Yaito.

Netto and Enzan blushed, but they heeded their friends' words and jumped in after changing into their swimsuits. The water was just right. Netto dove under Enzan and tackled him from behind.

"Hey! What was that for?" Enzan shouted.

"It was for you, of course!" replied Netto, a grin emerging on his face.

Enzan splashed Netto's face when he wasn't looking, starting an all-out war between him and his friends. The war lasted for a few hours before they got tired and decided to head back to their settlement.

"Bah, I'm hungry, let's eat!" Netto said.

"You're always hungry..." Dekao responded.

Netto stuck out his tongue at Dekao and helped him prepare the food they had brought. It was enough for a banquet! They had a large pot of curry (of course), some rice and meat, sandwiches, macaroni salad, snacks, and a bunch of various drinks.

They ate for an hour, laughing, joking, talking and teasing with one another. Before they knew it, it had gotten dark.

"Umm, Enzan, it's getting a bit late. We'll have to be home soon or our parents will worry about us," Meiru said.

"Okay, Meiru. I'll call my limo up to take you guys home. Meanwhile, Netto and I will stay here for a bit longer," Enzan replied.

"Uhh, okay. Just don't get too friendly now, okay guys?" Meiru laughed.

Netto and Enzan flashed red on their faces. The limo had come fifteen minutes later, and Meiru, Dekao, Tohru, Yaito and Chisao hopped in.

"Bye Enzan-kun! Bye Netto-kun!" the five of them shouted.

"Bye you guys!" the other two shouted back.

They watched the limo disappear into the darkness. Once out of sight, Enzan faced Netto again.

"It sure is pretty here, isn't it Netto-kun?"

"It sure is, Enzan-kun," Netto said. He leaned on Enzan's shoulder, letting him embrace him.

"Want to know what's more beautiful, Netto?"

"What is it?"

"You." As Enzan said this, he lifted Netto's chin up and looked at him in his eyes. "Extremely beautiful."

He leaned down to Netto and passionately kissed him on the lips. "I love you, Netto."

Netto's eyes became a bit watery, but he returned the kiss back with passion. "I love you too, Enzan."

There, the two of them sat for the rest of the evening under the moon and shooting stars, never happier in their entire lives.

The End.

* * *

Hikari Netto: Whew, now that's over, why don't you guys and girls review? ^^ All comments are welcome! :D Thank you for reading! x3


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